


For the Sake of an Understanding

by Phoenix_Down



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: All Gladio Wanted Was a Kiss, Brotherhood-era, Day 3, Even if the reason is pretty funny, Fluff, Gladnis Week 2017, M/M, Prompto and Noctis have the worst timing, experimental kissing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-06
Updated: 2017-12-06
Packaged: 2019-02-11 10:14:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,209
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12933117
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Phoenix_Down/pseuds/Phoenix_Down
Summary: Set between chapters 3 and 4 of my fic"In Plain Sight"you don't have to read that if you don't want to but - it's all about Gladnis ;)Gladio liked to say he was supportive of Ignis and his preferences, however, he was also curious. So when he asked Ignis what it actually felt like to kiss another guy, he didn't actually expect Ignis to comply and show him.





	For the Sake of an Understanding

**Author's Note:**

> I mentioned in "In Plain Sight" that I wanted to write the kiss scene between Ignis and Gladio, then Gladnis week popped up and one of the prompts was Brotherhood and I thought - perfect :D
> 
> **Location** : Ignis' Apartment  
>  **Hiding from** : The world  
>  **Year** : June 753  
>  **Ages** : Gladio: 20, Ignis: 19, Noctis: 17, Prompto: 17

Gladio stood at the door to Ignis' apartment and knocked, a bottle of whiskey in one hand and a bunch of flowers in the other. It may have been a bit overkill, but Gladio was determined not to make Ignis feel uncomfortable, his request was insane and countless times had Gladio almost picked up the phone to cancel. But he didn't, which is why he was now standing on Ignis' doorstep.

"Punctual as always, Gladio," Ignis said, opening the door with a smile. He wiped his hands on a tea towel slung over his shoulder, and extended his hands to relieve Gladio of one of his burdens.

Gladio handed over the bouquet of flowers with a blush, before easing his shoes off with his toes and following Ignis down to hallway into the kitchen.

"Are you hungry? I made a light snack," Ignis said gesturing to the dining room table where a homemade quiche lay in between two place settings, with a bowl of salad and a couple of other bowls of various coleslaws and pasta salads sat ready to be eaten. 

Gladio placed the whiskey on the counter with a soft shake of his head, Ignis definition of a light snack was always something more elaborate then what it was supposed to be. It did look good though, and Gladio wasn't one to let food go to waste.

"Help yourself," said Ignis as he unwrapped the flowers from the plastic and started trimming down the stalks before placing them artfully in a vase of water. 

Leaving the whiskey on the table, Gladio went and sat down in one of the dining chairs and cut himself a slice of the quiche. It wasn't long before Ignis had finished his flower arranging and joined him at the table.

"You sure you still want to do this?" Ignis asked as Gladio stuffed a huge forkful of a lightly spiced Galahdian couscous blend into his mouth. He stared at his friend, wide-eyed as he swallowed his forkful and nodded slowly.

"I mean it when I said I was curious, and that I want to support you. If this is what it takes…"

"This isn't what it takes though," Ignis said softly. "Just you being here, still being my friend is all it takes to support me."

"I know," Gladio placed his cutlery on the table, and placed both his hands face up beside them. "But I want to, you know me, once I get an idea into my head, no matter how silly or crazy it is, I have to follow through."

"A trait that is both admirable and infuriating," Ignis commented.

Gladio chuckled and picked up his cutlery again. "However, if you're not comfortable with this…"

"I just don't want it to ruin our friendship," Ignis interrupted.

"It's just a kiss," Gladio countered. "Unless you're implying that I'm about to get my mind blown from just a kiss?" he raised his eyebrows and wriggled them suggestively, hoping to get a little laugh out of his friend.

Ignis, however, remained stoic and only a small smile graced his passive features. "Eat your dinner," he said reaching over for a bowl containing potato salad.

Gladio did as he was told, but let his mind wander. What had turned out to be an innocent question of 'What's the difference between kissing a guy and a girl?' had turned into Ignis asking if he wanted to find out first hand. They'd tried there and then, in the locker room of the Citadel training rooms, only to be discouraged by Cor, who hadn't seen anything, thankfully, just merely seen fit to walk in at the wrong time. Which brought them to now, and Gladio was sure, call it his teenager experimental phase (albeit a couple of years later than most phases), but Gladio was insanely curious about how different kissing a guy was to kissing a girl. It was Ignis who'd suggested the experiment as well, Gladio was quite content to go drinking in a bar and find out for himself, but when Ignis suggested himself, Gladio thought there was no-one better out there, and he would remember it. It defeated the purpose of experimenting if he got too drunk to remember it in the morning.

They finished their meal in companionable silence, speaking only to share stories of how the rest of their day went, they cleaned up the table together, washed and dried together all the while acting as though nothing was different from their average weekend. Whilst Ignis found the perfect location for the vase of flowers, Gladio retrieved two glasses from a cupboard and poured them both a small measure of whiskey before they both convened on Ignis couch.

"So," Ignis said in a way that reminded Gladio of how he conducted himself during council meetings. "Shall we?"

Gladio nodded and reached for his glass, before downing the amber liquid in one swift gulp. It wasn't that he needed the courage one usually gained from drinking alcohol, it just felt the right thing to do. Ignis smiled and reached for his glass as well, throwing it back in one, before turning slightly on the couch. Gladio put his glass down and turned as well, so they were sitting facing each other, knees slightly touching.

"The experience is going to be different, dependant on the type of person your kissing. For example, you have a little stubble growing, so the kiss will be a little scratchy. I'm clean shaven, so a smoother kiss will be had."

Gladio shrugged. "So far nothing different then," he grinned. He had kissed a girl with a beard before, it was definitely a weird experience, but not off-putting. The beard was fake though, part of a costume at a convention he'd gone to. 

Ignis didn't ask, merely placed a hand on Gladio's knee. "Is this okay?" he asked and Gladio nodded, momently silenced. The hand was warm, even though his tracksuit bottoms he could feel the heat radiating off his friend's hand, it was also comforting. "We'll start easy," Ignis murmured and before either of them could back out, he leaned forward and placed a quick chaste kiss on Gladio's lips.

Ignis' lips were soft and fleeting, not enough for Gladio to really to make a decision, however as quick as it was, it left him wanting more. Whether it was the desire to follow through with the kiss, or something else he didn't know.

Ignis straightened up, his hand still resting on Gladio's knee. "How was that?"

"Oh did you kiss me?" Gladio teased. "I hardly felt anything."

Ignis tutted, smacking Gladio's knee lightly with the hand that was resting there, before leaning in again. This time the kiss lasted longer, but there was no pressure behind it. There was no support as their lips met, no movement, it was light, soft and felt really nice. All Gladio's forays into kissing and intimate relationships had been hard and fast; one-night stands, casual (benefit) relationships. Nothing slow and definitely nothing as intimate as that kiss.

The kiss ended and Gladio felt a pang of disappointment at the lack of contact. He leaned forward, automatically almost chasing Ignis' lips.

Ignis chucked, and placed his other hand on Gladio's chest, stopping his advancement before he leaned forward once more and captured Gladio's lips in a third kiss. This kiss was heavier, the hand on Gladio's chest moved up to cup Gladio's neck, giving them more support as they pressed their lips together. Gladio felt the urge to do more, at the moment he was just sitting there, arms hanging limply by his side as his best friend did all the work. That was another thing, he was kissing his best friend. A small section of his mind had thought that he would imagine he was kissing someone else, and thus rendering the experiment mute, but he didn't. He was kissing Ignis, or more accurately Ignis was kissing him. He opened his mouth slightly, before closing his lips around Ignis' bottom lip, pulling slightly.

Ignis' breathing hitched and pulled away from him but Gladio didn't miss the smirk he gave, his green eyes wide with amusement and Gladio felt something stir in him. There was something about seeing his friend like this that agreed with him and before he could even stop and think about what it could mean, he initiated the fourth kiss. Pressing forward and pushing Ignis down onto the couch, so the smaller man was underneath him. The kiss, whereas before had been nothing but chaste and innocent, became a little more heated as mouths opened and tongues danced within. A hand moved up to cup a face, another on a back, gripping at a shirt. It was passionate, breathless and interrupted by the shrill chirping of Ignis’ phone.

They broke apart, and Gladio groaned, pushing up and off Ignis as his friend took his phone out his pocket to answer.

“Noct?”

Gladio hadn’t realised that he was breathing heavily until he let out a groan of frustration, at the distraction. He was also painfully aware that the kiss had done a lot more than give Gladio an understanding of same-sex relationships. He pulled a pillow from out behind him and placed it casually in his lap as he waited for Ignis to finish on the phone.

Ignis was by no means an ugly man, in fact, Gladio had heard several people gush over how attractive the advisor was. Gladio had never really noticed if he was being honest, but now looking at how his pupils were blown, the way his perfectly styled hair had flopped in front of his face, the way his breathing had hitched before when Gladio had taken the initiative… he shifted uncomfortably hugging the pillow into his lap.

“So let me get this straight, Prompto was taking photos on your balcony and thought it would be a wise idea to stick his head between the railing bars and now can’t get out?”

Now that was an epic excuse for them to stop what they were doing. There was nothing like the prince's friend getting his head stuck somewhere compromising to put a damper on the mood and Gladio was secretly pleased. This experiment had been a way for him to understand his best friend better, a way to bond, however, now he was just left with more questions, a strong sense of confusion and some serious thinking to do.

“We should go rescue Prompto,” Ignis said hanging up his phone and looking at Gladio with a smile. “You alright?” He asked cocking his head the side questionable in a way that Gladio thought was cuter than a baby chocobo.

“Yep,” his voice sounded gruffer than he intended and he definitely shouldn’t be thinking of his best friend as cuter than a chocobo right?

“You sure?” _Still cute_ , but he pushed the thought aside to nod. “And ourselves? Are we still good?”

“What?” _They were right? Just because they had gotten a bit excited didn’t mean they weren’t good? Right?_ “I’m cool, we’re cool right?”

Ignis graced him with a soft smiled. “Did that answer your question?

“Yes “ _No, only create more,_ but he didn’t want to force Ignis into anything, Ignis was calm and collected about everything. Had he even kissed back?  _Oh, gods what was happening_. 

Ignis was still smiling. "Look I’ll go rescue the boys, you're more than welcome to stay. When I get back we can watch a movie or something?"

"Nah," Gladio shook his head. As much as he wanted to stay, hang out and possibly see what else could happen that night, he thought would be best to head home and collect himself together. "I should head home, thanks though are you okay to drive? I can get Jared to pick us up..."

"Noct’s sending a car I’ll be fine."

"Okay, we're cool then," _get yourself together Gladio. Stop being so awkward,_ he added as an afterthought.

"Indeed."

~*~

Ignis wasn’t so calm and collected as Gladio thought he was, the telephone from Noct hadn’t come at a more opportune time. His own feelings for Gladio superseded that as friends and although he selfishly agreed to help Gladio he’d done it an excuse to kiss someone he liked hoping it would help put his feelings for his friend on the back burner. It did nothing but heighten those feelings and whilst Ignis was keen to move forward in pursuing a relationship he would wait. After Gladio had taken the helm and pushed him into the couch Ignis realised that maybe agreeing to do this wasn’t the best idea for either of them. Not that Ignis was tooting his own horn with how good he was at kissing but he knew from experience that experimentation, even something just as simple as a kiss, could be rather dangerous.

He’d give Gladio some space to sort out the feelings he was obviously hiding, especially if the appearance of a pillow on his lap had anything to say about it. 

What he hadn’t planned on was that it would take six months, six whole months of awkward conversation and relationship strains. Six whole months before Gladio took the initiative to kiss him again.

 


End file.
